We hope to see you at the California Small Farm Conference February 26th to March 3rd, 2023! The event brings together small farm community – from growers to market managers to local food advocates – for a week of learning, inspiration, and movement building. This year’s gathering will bring back the new hybrid conference format featuring four days of online workshops, forums, and videos as well as a fifth day of multiple in-person gatherings around the state.
Be sure to join OSA’s Jared Zystro at the Dryfarming Practices and Perspectives session during the event. Details below.
Dryfarming Practices and Perspectives
February 28th at 1:00 p.m. PT
Moderators: Yvonne Socola, UC Berkeley; Jared Zystro, Organic Seed Alliance
Speakers: Amy Garrett, Assistant Professor of Practice, Oregon State University; Amy and Jacques Neukom, Neukom Family Farms; Silas Sarvinski, College of the Redwoods; Blake Richard, Wild Rose Farm; Jim Leap, School Road Farm; Verónica Mazariegos-Anastassiou, Brisa Ranch
As we confront the fragility of California’s water system, a crucial question emerges: how can we adapt to water scarcity without jeopardizing farmer livelihoods? Innovative farmers have turned to dry farming, a method of growing high quality produce with little to no external water inputs, and a radical departure from irrigated agriculture. Learnings from research conducted on seven such farms in the Central Coast region will be discussed along with experts from the Dry Farming Collaborative in a workshop designed to answer the following questions:
- What is dry farming?
- Is your site suitable for dry farming?
- What varieties are best suited to dry farming?
- What soil management techniques are beneficial in dry farm contexts, and how can you manage soils to encourage a healthy microbial community?
- What are the economics of dry farming? How might it fit in with your farm’s business model?
